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Nintendo

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Companies; Computer &
Video games

   Nintendo Company, Limited
   The Nintendo logo.
       Type     Public ( TYO: 7974 ; NASDAQ: NTDOY)
     Founded    September 23, 1889
   Headquarters Japan Kyoto, Japan

                United States Redmond, Washington, USA

                Canada Richmond, British Columbia, Canada

                Germany Großostheim, Germany

                Australia Scoresby, Victoria, Australia

                People's Republic of China Suzhou, China (as iQue, Ltd.)

                South Korea Seoul, South Korea
    Key people  Satoru Iwata, President and CEO
                Reggie Fils-Aime: President and COO for American Division
                Shigeru Miyamoto: Game designer
                Gunpei Yokoi: Created the GameBoy, Game & Watch, and Metroid
                Hiroshi Yamauchi: Former president and chairman
                Minoru Arakawa and Howard Lincoln: Former heads of NOA
     Industry   Card games
                Video games
     Products   Game Boy line, Nintendo DS, GameCube, Wii, and various video
                game titles.
     Revenue    USD$4.5 billion (2006)
                Forbes 2000 ranking: 620
    Employees   3,013 (2006)
      Slogan    Various
     Website    www.nintendo.co.jp (Japan)
                www.nintendo.com
                (North America)
                www.nintendo-europe.com (Europe)

   Nintendo Company, Limited (任天堂 or ニンテンドー Nintendō^ ?; NASDAQ: NTDOY,
   TYO: 7974 usually referred to as simply Nintendo) is a multinational
   corporation founded on September 23, 1889 in Kyoto, Japan by Fusajiro
   Yamauchi to produce handmade hanafuda cards. In the mid-twentieth
   century, the company tried several small niche businesses, such as a
   love hotel and a taxi company. Over the years, it became a video game
   company, growing into one of the most powerful in the industry. Aside
   from video games, Nintendo is also the majority owner of the Seattle
   Mariners, a Major League Baseball team in Seattle, Washington. In 2001,
   Nintendo purchased a sizable portion of Gyration Inc, a company
   specializing in gyros and motion sensors.

   Nintendo has the distinction of historically being both the oldest
   intact company in the video game console market and one of the largest
   and well-known console manufacturers, as well as being the most
   dominant entity in the handheld console market.

History

Early life

   Nintendo started as a small Japanese business by Fusajiro Yamauchi near
   the end of 1889 as Nintendo Koppai. Based in Kyoto, Japan, the business
   produced and marketed a playing card game called Hanafuda. The handmade
   cards soon began to gain popularity, and Yamauchi had to hire
   assistants to mass produce cards to keep up with the demand.

Middle life

   In 1956, Hiroshi Yamauchi paid a visit to the US, to engage in talks
   with the United States Playing Card Company, the dominant playing card
   manufacturer in the US. Yamauchi was shocked to find that the world's
   biggest company in his business was relegated to using a small office.
   This was a turning point where Yamauchi realized the limitations of the
   playing card business. He then gained access to Disney's characters and
   put them on the playing cards, in order to drive sales.

   In 1963, Nintendo Playing Card Company Limited was renamed to Nintendo
   Company, Limited by Hiroshi. Nintendo now began to experiment in other
   areas of business using the newly injected capital. During the period
   of time between 1963 and 1968, Nintendo set up a taxi company, a " love
   hotel" chain, a TV network, a food company (trying to sell instant
   rice, similar to instant noodles), and several other things (including
   a toy remote controlled vacuum cleaner called Chiritory - which was
   later seen as a two-player game in WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$ in
   2003). All these ventures failed, except toymaking, where they had some
   earlier experience from selling playing cards. Then, after the Tokyo
   Olympics, playing card sales dropped, leaving Nintendo with a measly 60
   yen in stocks.

   Riddled with debt, Nintendo struggled to survive in the Japanese toy
   industry; it was still small at this point, and dominated by already
   well established companies such as Bandai and Tomy. Because of the
   generally short product life cycle of toys, the company always had to
   come up with new product. This was the beginning of a major new era for
   Nintendo.

   In 1970, Hiroshi Yamauchi was observing a hanafuda factory. He noticed
   an extending arm, which was made by one of their maintenance engineers,
   Gunpei Yokoi, for his own amusement. Yamauchi ordered Yokoi to develop
   it as a proper product for the Christmas rush.

   The 1970s also saw the hiring of Shigeru Miyamoto, the man who (along
   with Yokoi) would become a living legend in the world of gaming and the
   secret to Nintendo's longevity; his creative vision was instrumental in
   determining the path Nintendo's future (and indeed, the industry's as a
   whole) would follow. Yokoi began to mentor Miyamoto during this period
   of time in R&D, teaching him all that he knew.

Electronic era

   Nintendo at this time saw how successful video games were and began to
   dabble in them. Its first step in that field was to secure the rights
   to distribute the Magnavox Odyssey in Japan, which it did in 1975. At
   the time, home video game consoles were extremely rare — even the
   seminal Atari PONG console had yet to be produced.

   Nintendo's first video arcade game was 1978's Computer Othello; a large
   handful of others followed in the next several years, Radar Scope and
   Donkey Kong being among the most famous of these. The early 1980s saw
   Nintendo's video game division (led by Yokoi) creating some of its most
   famous arcade titles. The massively popular Donkey Kong was created in
   1981 with Miyamoto as its mastermind, and released in the arcades and
   on the Atari 2600, Intellivision, and ColecoVision video game systems
   (although Nintendo itself generally had no involvement with these early
   console ports). This release method would be used on several later
   Nintendo arcade games of this same period, including the original Mario
   Bros. (not to be confused with the later Super Mario Bros.). In
   addition to this arcade and dedicated console game activity, Nintendo
   was testing the consumer handheld video game waters with the Game &
   Watch. Then, in 1985, Nintendo struck gold with its Nintendo
   Entertainment System and continued with the handheld gaming market with
   their highly successful GameBoy. Nintendo continued producing updates
   of these two concepts, leading it to become one of the world's most
   recognized video-game manufacturers.

   Now Nintendo's main line-up of video-game systems are the Nintendo DS/
   Nintendo DS Lite the Game Boy Advance SP / GameBoy Micro, the Nintendo
   GameCube, and the Wii.

Gaming systems

Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)

   The Nintendo Entertainment System
   Enlarge
   The Nintendo Entertainment System

   Nintendo Entertainment System, or NES, is an 8-bit video game console
   released by Nintendo in North America, Brazil, Europe, Asia, and
   Australia. Its Japanese equivalent is known as the Famicom (Family
   Computer). NES is the most successful gaming console of its time in
   Asia and North America, since Nintendo claims to have sold over 60
   million NES units worldwide. It helped revitalize the video game
   industry following the video game crash of 1983 and set the standard
   for subsequent consoles in everything from game design (the first
   modern platform game, Super Mario Bros., was the system’s first "
   killer game") to business practices. The NES was the first console for
   which the manufacturer openly courted third-party developers.

Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES)

   The Super Nintendo Entertainment System
   Enlarge
   The Super Nintendo Entertainment System

   The Super Nintendo Entertainment System, also known as Super Nintendo,
   Super NES or SNES, is a 16-bit video game console released by Nintendo
   in North America, Brazil, Europe, and Australia. In Japan it is known
   as the Super Famicom (Super Family Computer). In South Korea, it is
   known as the Super Comboy and was distributed by Hyundai Electronics.

   The SNES was Nintendo's second home console, following the Nintendo
   Entertainment System. Whereas the earlier system had struggled in the
   PAL region and large parts of Asia, the SNES proved to be a global
   success, albeit one that could not match its predecessor's popularity
   in Northeast Asia and North America—due in part to increased
   competition from Sega's Mega Drive console (released in North America
   as the Genesis). Despite its relatively late start, the SNES became the
   best selling console of the 16-bit era.

Nintendo 64 (N64)

   The Nintendo 64
   Enlarge
   The Nintendo 64

   The Nintendo 64, commonly called the N64, is Nintendo's third home
   video game console for the international market. The N64 was released
   on June 23, 1996 in Japan; September 29, 1996 in North America; March
   1, 1997 in Europe and Australia; and September 1, 1997 in France (the
   system also saw a release in Latin America, albeit an unofficial one).
   It was released with three launch games in Japan (Super Mario 64,
   Pilotwings 64 and Saikyou Haniu Shogi) but only two in North America
   and PAL region (Super Mario 64 and Pilotwings 64). The Nintendo 64 cost
   $199 at launch in the United States. It was Nintendo's first attempt at
   a 3D gaming platform, and Nintendo's first 64-bit gaming console.

Nintendo GameCube (GCN)

   The Nintendo GameCube
   Enlarge
   The Nintendo GameCube

   The Nintendo GameCube was Nintendo's fourth home video game console,
   belonging to the sixth generation era—the same generation as Sega's
   Dreamcast, Sony's PlayStation 2, and Microsoft's Xbox. Right up until
   the console's unveiling at SpaceWorld 2000, the design project was
   known as Dolphin— this can still be seen in the console and its
   accessories' model numbers. The GameCube itself was the most compact
   and least expensive of the sixth generation era consoles. The GameCube
   was the first Nintendo game console to use optical discs rather than
   game cartridges. The GameCube was released on September 14, 2001 in
   Japan; November 18, 2001 in North America at USD $149.95; May 3, 2002
   in Europe; and May 17, 2002 in Australia.

Wii

   The Wii
   Enlarge
   The Wii

   Wii (pronounced as the word " we", IPA: /wiː/) is Nintendo's
   seventh-generation video game console. Its official project code name
   was Revolution, and as with the GameCube, this reference appears on the
   console and its accesories.

   The major feature of the Wii is the console's wireless controller, the
   Wii Remote, that may be used as a handheld pointing device and can
   detect motion and rotation in three dimensions. The controller comes
   with a "nunchuk" accessory which gives more control to the player. The
   controller also contains a speaker and a rumble device to provide
   sensory feedback, and can be used to turn the Wii on and off. The
   console also features a stand-by mode entitled WiiConnect24, enabling
   it to receive messages and updates over the Internet while consuming
   very little electrical power. The console is shipped with a Wii Remote
   with Nunchuk, a remote sensor, a sensor stand, a console stand, and a
   free game, all right inside the box. Wii was released on November 19,
   2006 in the Americas for a price of US$249.99, and will be released in
   Japan on December 2, 2006 for JP¥25,000, Australia on December 7, 2006
   for AUD$399.95 and December 8, 2006 in Europe and the UK for €249 and
   £179 respectively.

Game Boy

   The Game Boy Advance SP
   Enlarge
   The Game Boy Advance SP

   The Game Boy (ゲームボーイ, Gēmu Bōi^ ?) line is a line of battery-powered
   handheld game consoles sold by Nintendo. It is one of the world's
   best-selling game system lines, with more than 188 million hardware
   units sold worldwide. The original Game Boy has sold 70 million units,
   while the Game Boy Colour sold 50 million units. The Game Boy Advance
   has managed to sell over 75 million units as of June 30, 2006. The most
   recent addition to the Game Boy line is the Game Boy Micro, another
   remake of the Game Boy Advance with a smaller screen for greater
   resolution, a more portable feel, and interchangeable faceplates.

Nintendo DS / DS Lite

   The Nintendo DS Lite
   Enlarge
   The Nintendo DS Lite

   The Nintendo DS (sometimes abbreviated NDS or DS, also as iQue DS in
   China) is a handheld game console developed and manufactured by
   Nintendo, released in 2004. It is visibly distinguishable by its
   horizontal clamshell design, which is almost a throwback to the Game &
   Watch, and the presence of two displays, the lower of which acts as a
   touch screen. The system also has a built-in microphone and supports
   wireless IEEE 802.11 ( WiFi) standards, allowing players to interact
   with each other within short range (30–100 feet, depending on
   conditions) or over the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service.

   The letters "DS" in the name are meant to stand for both Dual Screen
   and Developers' System, the latter of which refers to the features of
   the handheld designed to encourage innovative gameplay ideas among
   developers. The system was known as Project Nitro during development.

   On March 2, 2006, Nintendo released the Nintendo DS Lite, a redesigned
   model of the Nintendo DS, in Japan. It was later released in North
   America and Europe the following June. Gamers typically use the term
   "Phat DS" or "Tank DS" on forums to emphasize that they are referring
   to the older model.

Other hardware

     * Broadcast Satellaview - Only released in Japan, an add-on for the
       Super Famicom (Japanese SNES) that allowed anyone to download games
       by a satellite.
     * Game & Watch – A series of handheld games made by Nintendo from
       1980 through 1991.
     * Game Boy Player – An adapter for playing Game Boy games on the
       GameCube.
     * Game Boy Printer - An adapter designed for printing things from the
       Game Boy. It was used for printing out Pokémon information from the
       Pokédex in the Game Boy Pokémon games.
     * iQue Player – A version of the Nintendo 64, with double the clock
       speed and downloadable games, released only in the Chinese market.
     * iQue DS - A version of the Nintendo DS, release only in China.
     * Nintendo 64DD – Only released in Japan, this add-on system's games
       are on re-writable magnetic disks. Games released include a paint
       and 3D construction package, F-Zero X Expansion Kit, for creating
       new F-Zero X tracks, a sequel to the SNES version of SimCity,
       SimCity 64 and a few others. A complete commercial failure, many
       speculated that Nintendo released it only to save face after
       promoting it preemptively for years.
     * Pokémon Mini – Unveiled in London at Christmas 2000, the Pokémon
       Mini was Nintendo's cheapest console ever produced; with games
       costing £10 ($15) each, and the system costing £30 ($45). This
       remains the smallest cartridge-based games console ever made. Sales
       of this system were rather poor, but, unlike the Virtual Boy,
       Nintendo made a profit on every game and system sold.
     * Mobile System GB - Released in Japan, December 14, 2000. The Mobile
       System is an adapter to play Game Boy Colour games on the cell
       phone. The game Pokémon Crystal was the first game to take
       advantage of the Mobile System. Someone can hook an adapter to
       their Game Boy and connect it to a mobile phone which people can
       receive news, trade, and battle with other players across Japan.
     * Pokémon Pikachu - A handheld device similar to the popular
       Tomagatchi toy that allowed the user take care of Pikachu in the
       manner of a pet.
     * Super Game Boy – Adapter for playing Game Boy games on the Super
       NES, which would be displayed in colour.
     * Triforce – An arcade system based on Nintendo GameCube hardware,
       developed in partnership with Sega and Namco.
     * Virtual Boy – The Virtual Boy used two red monochrome displays to
       create a virtual reality-like system. Fewer than two dozen games
       were released for it in the United States. It is the only Nintendo
       game system to be a commercial failure (see here for more
       information).
     * Yakuman – A handheld Mah-jong game released in 1983.

People / Divisions

People

   Shigeru Miyamoto at E3 2006
   Enlarge
   Shigeru Miyamoto at E3 2006
     * Minoru Arakawa — Former president and founder of Nintendo of
       America.
     * Reggie Fils-Aime — President and COO of Nintendo of America.
     * George Harrison — Senior Vice President of marketing and corporate
       communications.
     * Satoru Iwata — Current president of Nintendo (2002-present).
     * Perrin Kaplan — Nintendo of America's Vice President of Marketing
       and Corporate Affairs
     * Tatsumi Kimishima — CEO and Chairman of the Board for Nintendo of
       America, Inc.
     * Koji Kondo — Composer of music tracks in many Nintendo games,
       including virtually every home console entry of Super Mario and
       Legend of Zelda.
     * Shigeru Miyamoto — Nintendo's chief designer and video game
       producer. Largely known for creating many of Nintendo's most
       popular games including Mario, Donkey Kong, Pikmin, and The Legend
       of Zelda. In 1998 Miyamoto became the first person to be inducted
       into the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences' Hall of Fame.
     * Howard Lincoln — Now retired, former Chairman of Nintendo of
       America.
     * Howard Philips — Creator of Nintendo Power magazine.
     * Satoshi Tajiri — Creator of the Pokémon series.
     * Yuka Tsujiyoko — Composer of music tracks in many Intelligent
       Systems games, most notably Paper Mario and the Fire Emblem series.
     * Fusajiro Yamauchi — Founder of Nintendo in 1889. Died 1940.
     * Hiroshi Yamauchi — Former president of Nintendo (1949–2002).
     * Gunpei Yokoi — Best-known as the creator of the Game Boy and the
       Metroid series. Died 1997.
     * Shigesato Itoi - Creator of EarthBound series
     * Masahiro Sakurai - Creator of Kirby and Super Smash Bros..

Divisions

   Nintendo has an extensive list of major developers that work on its
   systems. Some of the most popular being HAL Laboratory, Game Freak, and
   Camelot Software Planning.

Some popular franchises and characters

     * Animal Crossing - Also known as Animal Forest in Japan, a franchise
       that has developed a cult following and constantly growing install
       base with each installment. It has appeared on the Nintendo 64
       (Animal Forest), GameCube, Nintendo DS, E-Reader, and will soon be
       appearing on the Wii.
     * Brain Age - Nintendo DS title that helps players exercise their
       brains in minutes a day through simple, interactive problems.
     * Donkey Kong ( Nintendo EAD Tokyo) - Dates back to Nintendo's
       original line of arcade games. Introduced Mario, back then known as
       "Jumpman."
     * EarthBound (called " Mother" in Japan) - A very quirky role-playing
       game series that takes place in modern times.
     * Fire Emblem ( Intelligent Systems) - Medieval RPG/strategy series
       started in 1990, confined to Japan until 2003.
     * F-Zero - Futuristic racing game series which began in 1990
     * Game & Watch - Nintendo's oldest franchise, started on handheld
       systems.
     * Ice Climber - An old franchise featuring Popo and Nana, two
       parka-clad mountain climbers.
     * Kid Icarus - "Sister series" to the much more popular Metroid
       franchise. Stars Pit, a young, bow-wielding angel.
     * Kirby ( HAL Laboratory, Inc.) - A typically pink (but sometimes
       multi-colored) puff who can copy enemy powers for his own use. Has
       starred in several games since his debut on the Game Boy.
     * Mario (Nintendo EAD) - Nintendo's flagship franchise and main
       influence in the platform genre. Mario has branched out to multiple
       spin-offs including Mario Kart, Mario Party, Paper Mario, Mario
       Tennis, Dr. Mario and Super Mario Strikers (has a game for almost
       every sport).
     * Metroid ( Intelligent Systems / Retro Studios) - One of the
       company's most popular franchises, featuring a futuristic bounty
       hunter called Samus Aran.
     * Nintendo Wars - Series historically confined to Japan but has
       recently appeared overseas with Advance Wars and Battalion Wars.
     * Nintendogs - A dog simulator which can be considered the first of
       the Touch Generations branding of Nintendo games.
     * Pikmin - One of Nintendo's newest franchises, only two installments
       as of summer 2006 (both on the GameCube).
     * Pokemon ( Game Freak) - Arguably the most influential (and most
       lucrative) of Nintendo's franchises. The aim is to try and capture
       one of every species of Pokémon (currently 493 are available in
       standard canon) and become the strongest Pokémon trainer in the
       Pokémon world.
     * Punch-Out!! - Boxing game where the player had to fight his/her way
       to win the heavyweight belt.
     * Star Fox (Nintendo EAD) - Has appeared on the Super Nintendo,
       Nintendo 64, Nintendo GameCube and DS. Star Fox is a futuristic
       flying fighter.
     * Super Smash Bros. ( HAL Laboratory, Inc. / Sora Ltd.) - A fighting
       game that pins Nintendo's (and, more recently, other companies')
       franchises up against each other. Has appeared on The Nintendo 64,
       Nintendo GameCube, and will be appearing on Wii.
     * Legend of Stafy
     * The Legend of Zelda (Nintendo EAD) - One of the company's most
       popular franchises and widely considered to be among the best
       franchises ever. It has won numerous awards including several
       "Greatest Game of all Time" awards.

Released arcade games

     * Arm Wrestling
     * Battle Shark
     * Block Fever
     * Computer Othello
     * Cruis'n Exotica
     * Cruis'n World
     * Cruis'n USA
     * Donkey Kong
     * Donkey Kong Jr.
     * Donkey Kong 3
     * Duck Hunt
     * Excitebike

     * F-Zero AX
     * F-1 Race
     * HeliFire
     * Hogan's Alley
     * Ice Climber
     * Killer Instinct
     * Killer Instinct 2
     * Laser Clay Shooting
     * Mach Rider
     * Mario Bros.
     * Mario Kart Arcade GP
     * Mario Kart Arcade GP 2 (Japan Only)

     * Monkey Magic
     * The Nintendo Super System
     * The Nintendo Vs. Series
     * The PlayChoice-10 Series
     * Popeye
     * Punch-Out!!
     * Radar Scope
     * Shooting Trainer
     * Sky Hawk
     * SF-HiSplitter
     * Sheriff

     * Sky Skipper
     * Space Demon
     * Space Fever
     * Space Fire Bird
     * Space Launcher
     * Super Mario Bros.
     * Super Punch-Out!!
     * Test Driver
     * Urban Champion
     * Wild Gunman

Offices and locations

   The exterior of Nintendo's main headquarters in Kyoto, Japan.
   Enlarge
   The exterior of Nintendo's main headquarters in Kyoto, Japan.

   Nintendo Company, Limited (NCL), the main branch of the company, is
   based in Kyoto, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. Nintendo of America (NOA), its
   American division, is based in Redmond, Washington, a suburb, of
   Seattle. It has distribution centers in Atlanta, Georgia, and North
   Bend, Washington. Nintendo of Canada, Ltd. (NOCL) is a based in
   Richmond, British Columbia, with its own distribution centre in
   Toronto, Ontario. Nintendo of Australia, its Australian division, is
   based in Scoresby, Melbourne, Victoria, and Nintendo Europe, the
   European division, is based in Großostheim, Germany. iQue, Ltd., a
   Chinese joint venture with its founder, Doctor Wei Yen, and Nintendo,
   manufactures and distributes official Nintendo consoles and games for
   the mainland Chinese market, under the iQue brand. Nintendo also opened
   Nintendo of Korea (NoK) July 7, 2006.

Slogans

   Slogans from Nintendo (slogans in languages other than English are also
   included):
     * Now you're playing with power. (NES, 1985)
     * Now you're playing with power. Super power. (SNES, 1991)
     * Now you're playing with power. Portable power. (Game Boy)
     * Play it loud! (Game Boy, 1994)
     * A 3-D game for a 3-D World (Virtual Boy)
     * Get into it! (Game Boy Colour, 1998)
     * Vous n'en reviendrez pas (N64, France 1998)
     * Feel Everything Everywhere (Game Boy Colour, Europe 1999)
     * Welcome to the future (N64, Europe 1999)
     * Change the System (N64)
     * Get N or get out. (N64)
     * Life, Advanced. (Game Boy Advance, 2001)
     * Igazi játékos vagy? (Are you a real gamer?, Game Boy Advance,
       Hungary 2001)
     * La vie est un jeu (GameCube, France 2002)
     * Az élet játék. (The life is a game, GameCube, Hungary 2002)
     * Gaming 24:7 (Europe 2002)
     * Touching Is Good. (Nintendo DS)
     * Touch Me!"Touchez-moi!" (DS, 2005)
     * Pick up and play (DS, Europe 2005)
     * Open up and play (DS, Europe 2005)
     * Pour changer (Wii, France 2006)
     * Playing = Believing (Wii, 2006)
     * Who are you? (United States)
     * Too much fun. (Canada)
     * Kore wa nan deshou? (What is this?, Wii, Japan 2006)
     * What is this? This is Wii. (Also translations into other languages;
       Wii, Europe, 2006)
     * Wii Move You (Wii, UK 2006)
     * Wii would like to play (Wii, Americas 2006)
     * Oh Wii (Wii, Quebec Canada, 2006)

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nintendo"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
